JP6722971B2 - Vehicle front structure - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a vehicle front structure near a connecting portion between a cowl and a dash panel.

A cowl having a mounting surface of the windshield glass of the vehicle is connected to the dash panel. For example, in Patent Document 1, a dash panel is connected to a vehicle lower surface of a cowl (a front cowl in Patent Document 1), and the cowl and the dash panel are behind the vehicle at a position where the cowl and the dash panel are connected. A vehicle front structure having a brace for connecting to and is disclosed. According to the configuration of Patent Document 1, since the dash panel is reinforced by the brace and the vibration of the dash panel is suppressed, the noise caused by the vibration of the dash panel is suppressed.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2004-130976

In recent years, from the viewpoint of pedestrian protection, it has been required that the cowl be deformed and sufficiently absorb the impact against the impact from above on the cowl. However, if the rigidity of the cowl is too low, the windshield glass supported by the cowl vibrates when traveling, and unpleasant noise is generated. Although the vibration of the windshield can be suppressed by connecting the cowl and the dash panel with the brace like the vehicle front structure of Patent Document 1, the cowl is less likely to be deformed, and thus the shock to the cowl may not be sufficiently absorbed. There is.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a vehicle front structure that can both suppress the vibration of the cowl and easily deform the cowl against an impact.

The vehicle front structure according to one aspect of the present invention is
A cowl having a mounting surface of the windshield glass of the vehicle,
A dash panel connected to a portion of the cowl rearward of the vehicle with respect to the mounting surface;
In front of the vehicle where the cowl and the dash panel are connected to each other, a brace that partially connects the cowl and the dash panel apart from each other across the vehicle width direction,
The brace is
A flat plate-shaped upper piece that is connected to the cowl and extends from the connection position toward the front of the vehicle and downward of the vehicle,
A flat plate-shaped lower piece that extends from the lower end of the upper piece toward the rear of the vehicle and toward the lower side of the vehicle and is connected to the dash panel.

By separating the cowl in front of the vehicle from the dash panel, there is room for the cowl to deform toward the dash panel (downward of the vehicle). Therefore, the impact can be absorbed by the deformation of the cowl, so that the pedestrian injury value can be reduced.

Further, since the cowl can be supported by connecting the separated portion between the cowl and the dash panel in front of the vehicle with the brace, the vibration of the windshield glass attached to the cowl can be suppressed. In particular, by forming the brace with the flat plate-shaped upper piece and the lower piece, the brace is less likely to bend, so that the vibration of the windshield glass can be effectively suppressed.

Further, as shown in the above configuration, by making the shape of the brace when viewed from the side of the vehicle into a "<" shape, the brace is deformed so as to be pushed forward in the vehicle when an impact is applied to the cowl. To do. Therefore, it is easy to avoid that the deformed brace is sandwiched between the deformed cowl and the dash panel and the deformation of the cowl is suppressed, and the injury value to the pedestrian can be reduced.

1 is a schematic partial perspective view of a vehicle front structure including a brace shown in Embodiment 1. FIG. FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line II-II of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a deformed cowl of FIG. 2. (A)-(C) is the schematic of the brace shown in Embodiment 2. FIG.

A vehicle front structure 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The same reference numerals in the drawings indicate the same names. In the figure, "FR" indicates the front of the vehicle, "RR" indicates the rear of the vehicle, "UP" indicates the upper side of the vehicle, "LWR" indicates the lower side of the vehicle, "LH" indicates the left side of the vehicle, and "RH" indicates the right side of the vehicle. Show. The present invention is not limited to these exemplifications, and is shown by the scope of the claims, and is intended to include meanings equivalent to the scope of the claims and all modifications within the scope.

<Embodiment 1>
<<Overall structure>>
FIG. 1 shows the vicinity of a front end of a cowl 2 in a vehicle width direction central portion of a vehicle front structure 1. The portion shown in FIG. 1 is always covered with a hood (not shown). The vehicle front structure 1 is characterized in that (1) the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 are separated from each other in the front of the vehicle, and (2) the separated portion between the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 is connected by a brace 4. (3) The shape of the brace 4 and its connected state are limited. Hereinafter, each configuration provided in the vehicle front structure 1 will be described in detail.

≪Cowl≫
The cowl 2 of this example includes a mounting surface 20 to which the windshield glass 6 is mounted, and a trough-shaped portion 21 formed in front of the mounting surface 20 in the vehicle. The gutter-shaped portion 21 is a portion where a base portion of a wiper (not shown), a vent hole of a ventilator, and the like are formed. The gutter-shaped portion 21 is gradually narrowed from the opening above the vehicle toward the bottom. In other words, the wall surface of the trough-shaped portion 21 in front of the vehicle (rear of the vehicle) is inclined rearward of the vehicle (front of the vehicle) from its upper end toward its lower end. A dash panel 3 to be described later is connected to the dash connecting portion 23 of the cowl 2 rearward of the mounting surface 20 by welding or the like.

≪Dash panel≫
The dash panel 3 is a partition plate that separates an engine room in the front of the vehicle from a cabin in the rear of the vehicle. The dash panel 3 of the present example includes a first inclined surface portion 31 that descends downward in the vehicle as it faces the front of the vehicle, and a second inclined surface portion 32 that extends from the lower end of the first inclined surface portion 31 and descends in the vehicle as it extends rearward of the vehicle. Prepare The boundary between the first inclined surface portion 31 and the second inclined surface portion 32 is arranged in front of the mounting surface 20 in the vehicle.

≪Brace≫
The brace 4 partially connects a portion where the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 are separated from each other in the vehicle width direction in front of the vehicle with respect to a portion (dash connection portion 23) where the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 are connected. It is a member. Although one brace 4 in this example is provided at the center of the cowl 2 in the vehicle width direction, a plurality of braces 4 may be provided. When a plurality of braces 4 are provided on the cowl 2, it is preferable to arrange the braces 4 at predetermined intervals in the vehicle width direction. By connecting the separated portions of the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 with the brace 4, the cowl 2 is supported below, and the bending and vibration of the cowl 2 can be suppressed. As a result, vibration of the windshield glass 6 attached to the cowl 2 can be suppressed.

The brace 4 includes an upper piece 4U connected to the cowl 2 and a lower piece 4D connected to the dash panel 3. From the viewpoint of suppressing the vibration of the windshield glass 6 by the brace 4, the upper piece 4U is preferably connected to a position near the mounting surface 20 on the engine room side surface of the cowl 2. In this example, the gutter-shaped portion 21 located near the front of the vehicle with respect to the mounting surface 20 is connected to the rear wall portion of the vehicle. The upper piece connecting portion 40 that connects the cowl 2 and the upper piece 4U of the brace 4 is formed by spot welding or the like. Alternatively, the upper piece connecting portion 40 may be formed by connecting the cowl 2 and the upper piece 4U with a bolt or the like.

The upper piece 4U has a flat plate shape when viewed from the side of the vehicle. Since the upper piece 4U is connected to the wall portion of the trough-shaped portion 21 on the vehicle rear side, the front down arrangement extends from the connection position (the upper piece connection portion 40) with the cowl 2 toward the vehicle front side and the vehicle lower side. Has become.

On the other hand, it is preferable that the lower piece 4D is connected to a portion of the dash panel 3 that is located in front of the vehicle with respect to the above-described upper piece connecting portion 40. In this example, the dash panel 3 is connected to the surface of the second inclined surface portion 32 on the vehicle front side (engine room side). The lower piece connecting portion 41 that connects the dash panel 3 and the lower piece 4D of the brace 4 is formed by a spot or the like. In addition, the lower piece connecting portion 41 may be formed by connecting the dash panel 3 and the lower piece 4D with a bolt or the like. The lower piece connecting portion 41 is arranged in front of the upper piece connecting portion 40 in the vehicle.

In the above-described connected brace 4, as shown in FIG. 2, the position (the lower piece connecting portion 41) for connecting the lower piece 4D to the dash panel 3 with respect to the upper piece 4U of the brace 4 is displaced rearward of the vehicle. It becomes the position. More specifically, when the brace 4 is viewed from the side, it is below the imaginary line (see the left two-dot chain line in FIG. 2) that passes through the middle of the brace 4 in the thickness direction and extends along the extending direction of the upper piece 4U. The center of the one-sided connecting portion 41 is displaced toward the rear of the vehicle. The shift amount a, which is the shortest distance between the virtual line and the center of the lower piece connecting portion 41, is preferably 3.0 mm or more.

The brace 4 of this example further includes a pair of upper ribs 42 and a pair of lower ribs 43 provided at both ends of the brace 4 in the width direction (the same in the vehicle width direction). The upper rib 42 is preferably provided in the range of 70% or less from the upper end in the extending direction of the upper piece 4U. The upper end of the upper rib 42 in this example is located slightly lower than the upper end of the upper piece 4U. The upper end of the upper rib 42 may be located higher than the illustrated example as long as it does not interfere with the connection of the upper piece 4U to the cowl 2. On the other hand, the lower end of the upper rib 42 of this example is located slightly lower than the middle (50% position) of the upper piece 4U in the extending direction.

On the other hand, the lower rib 43 is provided from the lower portion of the upper piece 4U to the lower piece 4D. The upper end of the lower rib 43 is preferably provided within 20% or less of the lower end of the upper piece 4U. The lower end of the lower rib 43 is preferably at least below the lower piece connecting portion 41, and may be at the same position as the lower end of the lower piece 4D.

By forming the above-mentioned upper rib 42 and lower rib 43 on the brace 4, the rigidity of the brace 4 can be increased. Further, by forming both ribs 42, 43 on the brace 4, the brace 4 can be easily deformed at a place where both ribs 42, 43 are not provided. By forming the easily deformable portion on the brace 4, the brace 4 can be bent so as to be pushed forward of the vehicle when stress is applied to the brace 4 as described later.

<<Effect>>
According to the vehicle front structure 1 described above, the injury value to the pedestrian can be reduced. As shown in FIG. 2, when the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 are separated from each other in front of the vehicle, as shown in FIG. 3, when an impact is applied to the vehicle front structure 1 in the direction of the white arrow. This is because there is room for the cowl 2 to deform toward the dash panel 3 side. Since the impact is absorbed by the deformation of the cowl 2, it is possible to reduce the injury value to the pedestrian.

Further, since the cowl 2 can be supported by connecting the separated portion between the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 in front of the vehicle with the brace 4, it is possible to suppress the vibration of the windshield glass 6 attached to the cowl 2. In particular, by configuring the brace 4 with the flat plate-shaped upper piece 4U and the lower piece 4D, the brace 4 becomes difficult to bend, so that the vibration of the windshield glass 6 can be effectively suppressed.

Further, in the vehicle front structure 1 of the present example, as shown in FIG. 2, since the lower piece connecting portion 41 is displaced rearward of the vehicle with respect to the upper piece 4U of the brace 4, the vehicle front structure 1 is white. When an impact acts in the direction of the extraction arrow, the brace 4 is easily deformed so as to be pushed forward of the vehicle as shown in FIG. When an impact acts in the direction of the white arrow in FIG. 2, a stress f acts on the upper end of the brace 4 as the cowl 2 deforms. The stress f can be divided into a component force f1 along the upper piece 4U and a component force f2 orthogonal to the component force f1. Since the upper piece 4U extends straight, it is resistant to the component force f1, but the upper end of the upper piece 4U rotates rearward of the vehicle due to the component force f2. At this time, since the lower piece connecting portion 41 holds the position of the lower piece 4D of the brace 4 behind the vehicle with respect to the extending direction of the upper piece 4U, the lower side of the upper piece 4U is deformed so as to be pushed forward in the vehicle. In particular, in this example, the portion of the upper piece 4U where the ribs 42 and 43 are not provided is easily deformed, so that the portion is greatly bent and projects toward the front of the vehicle. In this way, when the brace 4 is deformed toward the front of the vehicle, it is easy to avoid that the deformed brace 4 is sandwiched between the deformed cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 and the deformation of the cowl 2 is suppressed. Therefore, the cowl 2 is sufficiently deformed and the injury value to the pedestrian can be reduced.

<Embodiment 2>
The brace 4 described in the first embodiment may have a configuration as shown in FIGS. The cross mark in FIG. 4 indicates the connecting position with the cowl 2 and the dash panel 3 shown in FIG.

The brace 4 in FIG. 4A is a brace 4 provided with only the lower rib 43. The ability of the brace 4 to support the cowl 2 (FIG. 2) is about the same as that of the brace 4 of the first embodiment.

The brace 4 in FIG. 4B is a brace 4 provided with only the upper rib 42. Similar to the brace 4 of the first embodiment, the brace 4 is easily deformed so as to be pushed forward in the vehicle upon impact.

The brace 4 of FIG. 4(C) is provided with both the upper rib 42 and the lower rib 43, and further, in the upper piece 4U, a padding portion such as a bead is provided between the lower end of the upper rib 42 and the upper end of the lower rib 43. It is a brace 4 provided with 44. In the case of the brace 4 of FIG. 4(C), a portion of the upper piece 4U between the upper end of the built-up portion 44 and the lower end of the upper rib 42 is a portion that is easily deformed by an impact.

As shown in FIGS. 4A to 4C, the bending position of the brace 4 at the time of impact is adjusted to a desired position by changing the formation position and the formation range of the ribs 42, 43 and the padding portion 44. be able to.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Vehicle front structure 2 Cowl 20 Mounting surface 21 Trough-shaped portion 23 Dash connecting portion 3 Dash panel 31 First inclined surface portion 32 Second inclined surface portion 4 Brace 4U Upper piece 4D Lower piece 40 Upper piece connecting portion 41 Lower piece connecting portion 42 Upper rib 43 Lower rib 44 Overlay 6 Windshield glass

Claims (1)

A cowl having a mounting surface of the windshield glass of the vehicle,
A dash panel connected to a portion of the cowl rearward of the vehicle with respect to the mounting surface;
In front of the vehicle where the cowl and the dash panel are connected to each other, a brace that partially connects the cowl and the dash panel apart from each other across the vehicle width direction,
The brace is
A flat plate-shaped upper piece that is connected to the cowl and extends from the connection position toward the front of the vehicle and downward of the vehicle,
From the lower end of the upper piece, extending toward the vehicle rearward in the vehicle rearward direction, and comprising a flat plate-shaped lower piece connected to the dash panel ,
The upper piece is linear when viewed from the side of the vehicle,
Vehicle front structure lower piece coupling portion that will be placed in front of the vehicle than the upper piece connecting portion for connecting the said upper piece cowl for coupling the said lower piece the dash panel.

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